1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an early warm-up device for a vehicle engine and more particularly, to an improved early warm-up device for a vehicle engine for shortening a warm-up period of time, thereby saving time, reducing a fuel consumption ratio and an exhaust gas, and extending the life of the vehicle engine.
2. Description of Related Art
Various types of early warm-up devices for a vehicle engine are known in the art. Some conventional early warm-up devices are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,568,647, 4,469,053, and 4,475,485, and Japanese Patent Laid Open Nos. 55-9766, 58-51370, 59-226224, 60-23459, 63-101504, 2-149728, 5-14564, 6-10157, 6-10158, and Japanese Patent Publication No. 60-1216. Generally, a vehicle should be driven under normal conditions only after the engine is ignited and the engine is warmed up to a certain temperature thereby preventing damage to the engine when generating the original power.
Accordingly, only a short time is required for the engine to warm up in the summer season. In the winter season, however, a long period of time is required for the engine to warm up, for example, about 3 to 5 minutes. Disadvantages in the winter season include delay in warming up the engine and a requirement for extra fuel.
Sometimes, a driver who is pressed for time drives the vehicle before the engine warms up, thereby causing some damage to the engine, thus preventing operation of the engine at full capacity, and shortening the life span of the engine.